This application relates to wireless communications, including communication systems, apparatus and techniques associated with wireless cellular networks that employ relay stations in addition to base stations.
Wireless cellular networks include stationary or fixed base stations that are spatially distributed over a network's service area to support communications for network subscriber stations (e.g. mobile phones, PDAs, laptop PCs, etc.). Allocated network channel frequencies are value resources and it is desirable to utilize such resources efficiently. Reusing allocated network channel frequencies to increase network capacity is one example for of various techniques for efficiently using the frequency resources. The reuse can be implemented, as one example, by partitioning a geographical area into a number of local radio communication service areas or cells and providing frequency reuse allocation that permits a channel frequency to be reused in certain non-adjacent cells. At the center of each cell is a fixed base station used for controlling the transmission and reception of protocol data units (PDUs) to and from subscriber stations distributed and roaming within its cell. In many wireless networks, base stations can transmit PDUs directly to subscriber stations via base station downlink (DL) radio signals; subscriber stations transmit PDUs directly to a base station via subscriber station uplink (UL) radio signals. DL and UL radio signals can be optimized based on dynamic channel and network conditions. Cell base stations communicate with each other either by point-to-point radio links, or by high capacity wireline based connections such as optical fibers.